


unexpected rescuers

by gladdecease



Category: Firefly
Genre: Community: comment_fic, Gen
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2011-11-12
Updated: 2011-11-12
Packaged: 2017-10-26 01:44:12
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 498
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/277221
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/gladdecease/pseuds/gladdecease
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>"Oh, good news," Wash said brightly, "it's the Alliance!"</p>
            </blockquote>





	unexpected rescuers

**Author's Note:**

> Originally posted [here](http://comment-fic.livejournal.com/149493.html?thread=31835381#t31835381) in response to [dragonbetween](http://dragonbetween.livejournal.com)'s prompt: Firefly; Crew; "I don't understand your definition of good news."

The crew was woken up by an announcement, and the worst kind possible.

"We've got Reavers, everybody, and lots of them!" Wash announced over the ship-wide comms. "I'm turning off everything but passive scanners. Kaylee, I need you shutting down the engines. Mal, Zoe, I need you up here."

People erupted from their rooms half-dressed, holding improvised weapons (or, in Jayne's case, actual weapons). Kaylee ran for the engine room barefoot, passing Zoe and Mal running in the opposite direction. Once she got there, it was the work of a moment to shut everything down. They'd done this often enough by now it was an ingrained habit. Done, she made her way carefully back to the others, sitting in a huddle in the common area by the kitchens. She understood the sentiment all too well - if Reavers were coming for them, she'd rather go out together than hide in her room.

As Mal and Zoe arrived, Wash glanced at his monitors and swore. "There's another ship headed our way, Captain, and it's a big one!" He looked over the other monitors and frowned. There was something different about this ship. If he could just place it...

Down in the common area, Jayne clutched Vera to his chest. "Ya think it's the mothership?"

"Is there even such a thing as a Reaver mothership?" Simon wondered. In his arms, River shuddered. Reavers being so close was terrifying her badly - small wonder, with all the sick, twisted things that had to be going on in their heads. Normal people were bad enough for her to be around, but that absolute insanity had to be torture for her.

Book shook his head. "Don't let yourself think about it," he said, the voice of experience speaking. "It can only give you nightmares."

"Yeah, like we need more of those," Kaylee muttered, leaning on Inara. Inara wrapped an arm around her shoulder and leaned in, murmuring something gentle and reassuring in her ear.

Back in the front of the ship, Wash snapped his fingers. He'd placed the difference in the other ship. "Oh, good news," he said brightly, "it's the Alliance!"

Mal froze where he stood. He blinked and opened his mouth, considering a number of things to say, and settled on, "I don't think I understand your definition of good news, Wash."

"No, I mean, the Alliance is taking out the Reavers." He gestured at one of the screens, where one large blip was moving towards all the bright, fuzzy blips. The bright, fuzzy blips were slowly disappearing, leaving only a brief afterglow behind.

"Well," Mal said, momentarily dumbfounded. "Good thing the Alliance was here."

"Now there's something I never thought I'd hear you say," Zoe said, smiling. She wrapped her arms around her husband, leaning into the hand he held against her cheek. He smiled up at her, then leaned over to turn ship-wide comms back on and announce to the rest of the crew that they were safe for the moment.


End file.
